Reach for the stars...

niccatw

LT - I must have totaslly missed that on the newsletter. I did think he'd be looking for it though as it's usually there!

If I were you, I'd just write a letter stating you want to close the account. Going in is a pain in the a**!!! Though, check theire website's too, I'm sure I just downloaded a form and posted it to close my Bank of Scotland account.

I received a letter from RBS today saying they'd unsuccessfully tried to call me on a non-urgent customer service matter and could I call them back. It was from the same branch I had the above conversation with (which is not the branch that holds my current account or loan but the only branch I can use to pay my second job cheques into.)

So it has to be something to do with that pallava! I gave them my mobile number (but did say the battery was dead so there was no point in them calling me on it that day) and there's no missed calls. If it's that bl**dy important, they can call me! (And I'll probably ignore it anyway if it doesn't come up with a name. )

I'm going to ask for a refund on the Groupon deal for Crieff Hydro. The terms and conditions stated valid until 3rd March. But when we called to book, they said that excludes school holidays. Any potential school holiday dates in the UK. So we actually only have until 11th February to use it. And it already excluded weekends and we can't co-ordinate the 4 of us who booked going at the same time.

And to be honest, even if we could, we probably wouldn't as it's pretty shady of them to do that so I'd rather they didn't get my money just because they can get away with it! There will be other spa deals and we will be vigilant in looking out for them!

I've been at a meeting all night... a bunch of us are attempting to arrange a conference in Edinburgh in May! But none of us have ever done that kind of thing before or are in any way trained to do that kind of thing - so, if your reading this and you think, "oh, I can do that!", do offer your words of wisdom!

We have confirmed speakers and projected figures and a venue... but no bank account! Hmmmmmmmm!!!

niccatw

And since my last post I have been either working or sleeping. I think I may have caught up on my sleep deficit now!

I freaked out the poor guy I work with this morning as I just about fainted as we were sorting out his feed. You know that way you get, when you come out in a sweat and get totally dizzy! I had to go and lie down on his bathroom floor until the feeling passed!

At least he has district nurses visiting daily. Though I think they are supposed to be for him, not his carers!!! It seems to have passed though. And I'm now curled up watching Dancing on Ice after sleeping most of the afternoon.

3 NSDs since Friday. Alternating between work and sleep is great for cutting out the spending!

(Though I should probably admit to browsing holidays online. Not that I can afford one, but I sooooo need one! . I'm using the technique I use when clothes shopping these days: have a look but don't buy. If I obsess about it for ages afterwards, then it might be worth looking at again and working out whether it's feasible! If I totally forget all about it then I was never that interested! Right now it might just be because I collected my friend from the airport after her holiday to Cyprus!)

niccatw

The £10 from my Co-op account and the £10 from my A&L account have now cleared and come off the RBS loan total, so it's now £6697.60.

I've transferred £8.53 to it form A&L, rounding down my A&L to the nearest 10. I won't do this for the Co-op account until next month as there's not really much money left in it!

And the pesky RBS have changed the way I can view my loan! So I can't get a statement or whatever for the last month. I suspect they are being sneaky burgers!

And it means I will have to be have strong self-discipline as I can't transfer money from my RBS curent account to it.

I can, however, transfer money from RBS current account to A&L or Co-op and then to RBS loan, by the looks of it. Seems a bit convoluted and ludicrous, if you ask me.

But if you want to beat a bank, you've got play dirty these days, don't you! So, my first challenge of the year: blast that pesky RBS loan to pieces so I can get onto that Northern Rock one as soon as!

Might go and play on the snaowball calculator whilst waiting for the skate off!

I've also been lurking on the work lunches challenge - I think that might help me get organised and actually take lunches in! None of this skipping them because I'm too lazy to make them the night before nonsense (I'm never going to make them in the morning. It just won't happen, no point in being completely delusional about it! ).

I also had a wee nosey on the 11k in 2011 - but that scared me a bit! I might be brave enough to head back there soon! And if I don't get to 11k, so what! I might get closer to it than if I don't join...

MatyMoo

You OK hun? No more funny turns? Any idea what caused it? Had you eaten breakfast?

Great news on the RBS Loan :T And that you can get money through to it from your other accounts :T Bonkers that you have to do it that way though!

Step away from the holiday brochures :rotfl: Although I did get asked by my pal in america earlier today if I was going to go and visit her in May Have checked my Nectar points and they would pay for half the fare. So now doing the shall I shan't I dance It would be something nice to do after I get made redundant wouldn't it????

Maty
-x-

niccatw

No idea Maty. But there's no such thing as immaculate conception so I can't be pregnant :rotfl:

But no, I hadn't eaten breakfast yet and I'd only been up for 5-10 mins, but still. I don't tend to nearly pass out first thing. And I don't normally eat anything for a good couple of hours after I get up. I seem to be ok now though so it was either funny blood sugars or a need to catch up on sleep.

My friend's wee boy has had a horrible vomitting bug so I'm glad it doesn't seem to be that (not that I would have caught it through her text messages mind. We cancelled our trip to the carnival with the kids for that reason, so haven't seen them.)

Re. the holidays... (mine and yours ) It's a balance really, isn't it? I can't remember the last time I went on a proper holiday, as in being away for more that a long weekend and doing it just for me.

I was looking at organised holidays where I get to do some yoga and learn a new skill (surfing :rotfl:). And meet new people, so it was less scary going away on my own. I could do it for about £1000 (rounded up), so it depends whether I want to take that much off my debt busting for the sake of my sanity.

And if you look at it that way, it might be a small price to pay!

Same with a trip to America, redundancy or not. What's the cost of the flights, even with Nectarcard paying half? What's the cost of accommodation? Spending money? Spending time with your friend? How long would you go for? Would it help sort out your head for what lies ahead or would you beat yourself up feeling guilty?

The one thing I have learned about my debt-busting is that it's not always about the money. It'd got to be about me too, otherwise I'd crack up. Or run screaming from the wagon, brandishing my credit card with reckless abandon. And I'm not about to let that happn.

The holiday is in the back of my mind as a motivator: if I pay off £x amount of debt (or if I bust this RBS loan!), it can be my reward.

But by then I might be so scarily obsessive about the next debt that I move the goal posts. I'd need to save the money, and when you've been debt-busting for so long - and on MSE too - you can just hear Martin and all the others telling you it doesn't make sense to save when you've debts, especially right now!

But there's no harm in knowing what's out there for the day I can book a holiday with [probably very well thought out] reckless abandon. :rotfl: (I'll be looking at India that day. Not Spain. )

niccatw

See that bl**dy RBS!!!!

I can only assume that the customer service advisor who wrote to me saying she couldn't get in touch with me (still had no missed calls and if my phone is switched off, I usually get a text message saying some-one tried to call - if they've left a message) was phoning to apologise profusely on the behalf of the bank's incompetence!

Todays letter told me they "are aware you may have already been in contact with us regarding your current situation or to arrange a repayment plan to repay your loan... while your loan remains in arrears... blah, blah blah...

They quoted Consumer Credit Act, sent the help/advice sheets.... you kno, the normal stuff.

Apparently I'm in arrears by £2480.00

Basically the £2500 I overpaid minus the £10 from A7L and £10 from Co-op.

Quick check of the online statement shows they paid the £2500 into my current account and took it out of my loan account. Then they paid £5000 into the loan account and sorted out the current account.

So it should all have sorted itself out. However, the date of the letter and the dates on online account (seem to remember not being able to access the loan one, but don't remember seeing the £2500 accidently paid into the current account - which you'd think I'd maybe notice ) mean it was all sorted out before they even sent that letter!

Way to give a person palpatations when they open their mail! I thought they'd decided to ask for all the rest back in one go!

Ok, melodramatic rant over! It seems to have sorted itself out. It's just another thing to dislike about RBS! All the more incentive to get that loan to France...

Change subject!

Work was hectic and I've decided to tell my boss I can't continue with the course. Something's got to give and I'd rather it wasn't me (this is actually what I am thinking of saying, but fear that verges on emotional blackmail ). I don't think it will go down well and I don't know what it will mean in terms of paying back the fees. But I don't think the resubmission is going to pass anyway (haven't done the work, just don't have the energy in the little time I have left over).

Feel a bit rubbish about the decision to be honest. I'd love to do the coure but I need to be realistic - something does have to give. And that is the obvious candidate! (My boss would probably say it should be the second job but than she can't see my signature below!) And it's pride that is making me feel rubbish!

I should actually acknowledge it's a huge step forward for me to be able to say that I can't do it. And it'll be another huge step forward saying that to the boss! (My inkling is I'll put the essay in anyhoo, it'll fail and the decision will be somewhat taken out of my hands as it'll have to come to a head. Not the best way of dealing with it, I know, but perhaps the only way given the time-scale, my level of bravery (or lack there-off) and when I'll next see my boss!)

Ok, still ranting. (Maty, maybe, on Mike's thread, you read mediation instead of meditation twice for a reason!!! )

On a positive note today is my fourth 4th NSD in a row. And I made a pot of sweet potato and red onion soup when I cam home from body balance, so that's lunch sorted!

MatyMoo

Aaaaarrrggghhh to RBS, what a load of plonkers :mad:

Sometimes you just have to let things take their natural course and if that is putting in the next essay which is done to the best of your ability in the time available, failing, and then dealing with the conversation with your boss so be it. It would be the course this brave soldier took anyway :rotfl:

But then, you never know, the person marking it may think it is enough.....

Did you get anywhere with the chat you had with your bosses boss and the proposed meeting?

I am still pondering your wise words from a couple of days ago re holidays

niccatw

Thanks Maty. I suspect I don't actually want the person marking it to think it's ok enough to pass! I suspect I want to find myself in the position of having to have that conversation. I suspect my pride might come into the equation if I do enough to just pass and that I will begin to tell myself that it's only another 8 months and that it'll be fine and I can do it and it'll be good for my future career - and all those other reasons we all come up with about these things.

And whilst all of those things might be tue, it doesn't necessarily make them right for me. So I need to try and keep that in mind.

I also had to go back and find out if I really did impart "wise words" for you to mull over. I thought perhaps you were being delusional. Let's be honest, if I learned to proof read, my words would be a lot wiser as at least you wouldn't have to be always trying to decipher them! :rotfl:

I've not looked at "my holiday" since, but it is in the back of my mind still.

Saying that, I am now querying whether it's sensible to transfer the £600 I've got for "that" loan! Bumped into a bunch of workmen as I left the flat this morning, mulling over the floor of the close which has been dug up for a few months now. I'm assuming they were appointed by the factors (Scottish thing. The people appointed to co-ordinate the upkeep of the communal areas and the actual building in flats).

They did impart to me that they didn't know who dug it up in the first place, they suspect it was Scottish Water. They asked if I had any problems with water pressure and they said there was water "gushing" under the building.

Now, I'm no expert, but I suspect that is not a good thing!!! And that it will also be an expensive thing!!! (Unless it turns out to be completely the fault of Scottish Water - so start those telepathic thoughts for me!!!)

There are 6 flats in my block. Two of us own our flats and the other 4 rent from a housing association, who also factor the building. The factors can authorise work that costs up to £1000 without the agreement of residents and we are liable to pay. Anything over that amount, then the residents have to agree the work is needed. But essentially us two owners will always fall short at that as the factors will decide and pay for the four flats that they rent out and it's a majority decision.

Which essentially means, if anything does need done, I have absolutely no control over who compltes the work or what it will cost.

And I might only get a letter with projected work/estimates if it is over the threshold of £1000. Hence the need for telepathic thoughts believing Scottish Water are responsible for sorting it out .

psychopathbabble

Hope the repairs aren't too much and well done on accepting you can't do everything but it's not an admission of failure x

MatyMoo

It is most certainly Scottish Water's Fault. But would hang on to the £600 just in case or now!

And I understand factors